Revelations
by xkatexmonsterx
Summary: A different look at Eponine's unrequited love for Marius, and the triangle between them and Cosette.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: In this story, Eponine is friends with Les Amis de l'ABC and is closer to Cosette; characters may be slightly OOC; characters may be linked together more closely than in the musical or book, and this story doesn't actually link to a lot of the events in Les Misérables._

_You've been warned; if you came here looking for canon Eponine and Marius, chances are you may have to find another story._

**Chapter One**

"I'd like to think so." Marius reached out and touched his friend's shoulder, noticing how tired she looked. "It's late. I think we should say goodnight."

Eponine looked up into Marius's hazel eyes and smiled. "We haven't talked like this for quite a while, M'sieur Marius. I haven't seen you smile like this for a long time."

"I'm glad you stopped by tonight, 'Ponine. You didn't have to stay and listen."

When he called her by her nickname, her heart seemed to beat faster. She didn't know if that was possible, or why she still reacted even now, but she was smiling inside as well as outside. "What are friends for?"

The question seemed to hang in the air. _As long as you let me be your friend, I'm happy,_ Eponine mused. _You don't even have to love me the way I love you._

Eventually he nodded and continued to watch her. "'Ponine… if you pass by the garden sometime soon, and you see Cosette there… will you please give her this letter for me and tell her I can't meet her till Thursday?"

The trance was broken at the sound of Cosette's name. Eponine unconsciously bit her bottom lip as she shook her head, forcing herself to come out of her dreamy stupor. "You know I will." She took the envelope he held out, and managed a smile. "Anyway, you should get some sleep. You have a long day coming up tomorrow."

Marius smiled. "That I do, 'Ponine… that I do." He noticed her shiver, and looked at her in concern. "You're cold."

"I'll be all right."

Not taking no for an answer, he stood up, shrugged off his jacket and held it out to her. "You need this more than I do."

"I don't, really, M'sieur, you'll be cold walking back tonight."

He saw her hesitance and reluctance to take the jacket, and then he remembered her parents. No doubt Thénardier and his wife would cross-question her for wearing a good jacket; they would take it to sell in exchange for food.

"Then perhaps you will allow me to lend you the jacket and walk back with you. Then I shall be mean and take back the jacket, so that I can walk back to my home less cold. Walking while talking to you will take some of the cold away."

Marius watched her think about this for a while; eventually she nodded and stood up, and he slipped the jacket around her shoulders.

Eponine slid her arms through the sleeves, and pulled it tighter around her. The jacket was still warm from his body heat, and smelt like him. _Marius._ She rubbed her arms in the cold, not caring how much the jacket hung off her small frame.

Marius chuckled softly. "On second thought, seeing how that jacket could be a mattress, pillow and blanket on you, perhaps I shouldn't take it back."

She scrunched up her face at him playfully and smiled. "Perhaps you should. I think I'm going to die of heat in a few minutes."

An amused glint shone in his eyes. "In that case, maybe I should make you warmer so that I can take the jacket back."

Before she knew it Marius had moved around her and wrapped his arms around her tightly from behind. She laughed, surprised, and looked back over her shoulder at him. "Now I'm certainly not cold any more."

"Then my work here is done." He nodded solemnly, but didn't let go of her. "You should get back, 'Ponine, no doubt your parents are worried about you."

Eponine shook her head, not wanting to think about her parents while she was with him. "They won't miss me until around eleven or so."

Marius held his watch up to his face, and withdrew his arms from around her quickly. "It's ten to eleven."

She turned around in shock. "Already?"

He smiled at her wide eyes and showed her his wrist. "Can you believe we've been sitting here talking for four hours?"

Eponine shook her head in disbelief. "Has it really been that long?"

"According to this, it has. Come on, I'll walk you home."

The walk to where Eponine lived was a short one. They walked close together in a companionable silence; Eponine thinking of Marius, knowing he was thinking of Cosette.

As they walked, Eponine turned her head to observe his profile, lost in thought. _I wish I could tell you how I feel about you_, she thought, tightening the jacket around her unconsciously. _I wish I meant as much to you as Cosette does._

Before she knew it, they were at her apartment, and she reluctantly peeled off his jacket. "Thank you for lending me your jacket, M'sieur."

"My pleasure. It was nice not to see you cold tonight."

"Will I see you soon?"

It slipped out before she thought to restrain herself; it did not seem to have an effect on him, though. He was silent for a minute before speaking. "I can't make any promises, but I hope so."

Eponine nodded, and regarded his face carefully as she handed his jacket to him, knowing it might be any number of days before seeing him again. "Goodnight, M'sieur Marius."

His eyes fell to the letter in her hand before his gaze travelled upwards over her rags to her plain but determined, loyal face. "Dear Eponine… thank you for all you have done for me."

She shook her head quickly. "Don't thank me. Your friendship is all the thanks I need." Suddenly Eponine's throat tightened, and she turned away so Marius couldn't see the expression on her face. She took a deep breath and pushed her hair off her shoulders to where it fell down her back, the result of not being able to afford scissors. "If anything, I should be thanking you."

He shook his head. "Please tell your sister hello for me."

Eponine turned around, and he was still smiling at her. She smiled back. "I will. I know she won't admit it, but she'll be happy to hear that; the two of us miss having you around."

"And I miss you." The emotion in his eyes was evident; Eponine could not remember if he had ever been anything short of genuine towards her. "You should go in… it's getting late. I hope I see you soon. Sweet dreams."

"Sleep well, Marius." Suddenly Eponine was aware of how close he was, and was reminded of all the couples she saw at night in the streets of Paris. She closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, careful not to betray the extent of her feelings to him. _Except that I've never been the one you've wanted to be with._

Marius saw her sigh, but thought it was purely from exhaustion. He wondered what she was thinking at that moment, but didn't ask. Instead, he leaned forward and touched her shoulder lightly. "I won't keep you any longer. Goodnight, 'Ponine."

She bit her lip and stared down at her bare feet beneath the ragged hem of her skirt, unable to meet his eyes for some reason. "Goodbye."

Eponine forced herself to open the old, creaking main door and walk into the lobby. Once inside, she managed to smile and wave to Marius, barely discernible through the layer of dirt on the window.

Marius waved back, and turned around to walk in the direction they had come from. Once his figure was out of sight, she let out a sigh and leaned back heavily against the cracked, peeling wall, hearing Azelma's murmurs as she drifted off to sleep on the other side of the wall. _If only you knew._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"Cosette!"

The girl sitting in the garden looked around. "Eponine!" She went to the gate and let her friend in. "How have you been?"

"I've been all right." Eponine stepped through the gate and into Cosette's garden. "Marius asked me to tell you he won't be able to make it until Thursday night, and also to give you this."

She watched, trying to calm her jealousy as Cosette took the letter from her, smiled, and put it in one of the pockets of her dress. "Thanks, Eponine."

Although not fanciful, Cosette's dress was blue silk, the kind Eponine loved to admire when she watched young women pass her on the streets in carriages: it reminded her of a time, distant but not entirely forgotten to her.

Eponine always wondered at how Cosette could always seem so offhand about Marius. She knew how much Cosette loved Marius, but always appreciated how little a deal Cosette made of it in public, even though she had never told Cosette how she felt about Marius.

_Well, unless that weak moment counts, three months ago before Cosette met Marius._ Eponine sighed a little. Ever since then, she had referred to her feelings for Marius in the past tense, on the rare occasions where it had been brought up. Cosette was like a sister to her; although Eponine's parents had never been good to her as a child, and didn't know they were still friends, Eponine and Cosette had always considered each other sisters, and Eponine had always been welcome at the Rue Plumet, where Cosette lived.

_I wonder if Marius sees me as a sister,_ Eponine mused. He certainly did not see her the same way as Cosette; yet she had always wondered why he had always been so friendly, so open, more so than when he was with his friends at the ABC Café.

She noticed a quizzical expression on Cosette's face, and smiled reassuringly. "How is your father?"

"He's fine." Cosette leaned forward in confidence, looking around to make sure there were no others present at the garden. "Although I worry about him, to tell you the truth. He's been out a lot, these nights, and sleeps most of the day. I'm not even awake when he comes in. Do you ever see him around at night, Eponine?"

Eponine closed her eyes, not wanting to tell her the truth. "It is… difficult to say. You know I don't frequent these areas at night; if I ever do come around, it's hard to distinguish one man from the other, they look so similar at night. But I'll ask around and see."

Cosette nodded, leaned further forward, and lowered her voice so only Eponine could hear. "Do you think it can have anything to do with the revolution Marius and his friends are planning?"

How could she tell her what danger all of them were in? Eponine made herself meet Cosette's worried gaze. "I'll keep a lookout. Don't worry, Cosette, your father is a strong man."

"But he's also getting a lot older." Cosette leaned back, somewhat relieved by Eponine's words. "He asks about you a lot, you know."

"Does he know about Marius yet?" Vaguely Eponine wondered if Cosette had any idea how she really felt about Marius. Cosette had never brought it up, but she knew Cosette's silent, observational moods. Since Cosette and Marius had fallen in love, Eponine had resigned herself to mentioning Marius in passing.

Cosette shook her head, thoughtfully. "You know how protective Papa is, and I think he may know Marius from the barricades. I don't want him to suddenly change his opinion, if he does." She paused, watching Eponine before hesitantly admitting, "Sometimes I worry, Eponine. Did you know he's never told me about his life before he came and adopted me?"

Eponine didn't know what to say to this. "Everything happens for a reason. I'm sure you'll find out in time, Cosette."

Her friend nodded, reluctantly. "That's what Papa would say, though it's been so many years since then. I know I should wait, but I just want to know what's troubling him. It worries me that he hasn't told me anything about these changes. He seems to have so much on his mind lately."

A silence fell between them, and Eponine's gaze fell on an object lying on a table. "Is that the doll your father gave you when he first met you?"

Cosette seemed suddenly to come to her senses, and laughed aloud, focusing on the object. "It is indeed. I found her amongst some of my old things this morning. Can you believe she's still preserved after all these years?"

"With you, I'm not surprised. If I had been the one to receive her, she would be broken and her clothes torn today." Eponine laughed sadly, thinking of the limp rag dolls Azelma played with and comparing them to the beautiful dolls she herself had owned as a child. Her family's life now was so different to what she had had growing up, and she had often regretted that things had turned around while Azelma was still a child.

She let her mind wander, imagining if things had never changed, remembering how happy she had been, before she had found out the truth about her family. Lately all that seemed to be important in her family was protecting Azelma; her ten-year-old sister was still dependent and vulnerable, and Eponine would have sacrificed her life to keep her safe. _I wish I could give all that I had to you, 'Zelma._

Cosette picked up on Eponine's sombre mood, and attempted to lighten the subject. "Do you remember how we used to fight over dolls when we were little, Eponine?"

Eponine laughed in spite of herself, glad to be rid of her thoughts. "How could I forget? They would end with my mother sending you out to fetch water from the well, which she knew you hated."

Cosette laughed and shuddered. "It's a memory I'd rather not relive, but it was a long time ago. Everything was a long time ago. I'm glad I found you again, though."

Sentiments such as this was rare to hear directly from Cosette, and Eponine smiled before noticing the shadows on the wall. "I'd better go, it's late."

"Thank you for the letter."

"I'll see you soon." Swiftly Eponine made her way to the gate and let herself out, walking to the park more from habit than from consciousness.

The sky was growing dark, and rain had started to fall, but she barely noticed any of these things, lost in thought.

"'Ponine!"

The familiar voice struck Eponine immediately and she turned around as a reflex, an automatic but genuine smile on her face. "Marius!"

He laughed, surprised. "I did not expect to see you so soon. How has your day been?"

Attempting to snap out of her pensive state, Eponine shrugged a little. "I just came back from the Rue Plumet."

"You truly are an angel, 'Ponine." Marius smiled and patted her shoulder. It was a friendly touch, but this set something off in Eponine. Unconsciously, her smile fell away.

He looked at her, concerned. "What's wrong?"

Too late she realized her abrupt change of mood. "It's nothing. I've just realized I must get home early, is all."

It wasn't a complete lie. After getting home so late the previous evening, her parents had repeatedly berated her for staying out and not returning home with any money. Trying to change the subject, she asked, "I thought you weren't free to see Cosette until Thursday?"

"I'm on my way to the ABC Café now, actually. Enjolras has scheduled another important meeting, and he's made it clear we can't miss this. Anyway, you'd better get home. I don't want to make your parents angry at you again."

Marius's concern for her made her feel slightly better. She nodded, and turned. "I'll see you around."

"Are you busy tomorrow night?" he asked, watching her, again wondering at her sudden tension and evasiveness. When she shook her head, he smiled. "Drop by the ABC Café for a while. My friends keep asking me where you are."

She shrugged, trying to play it off. "Then I'll see you tomorrow. Take care, M'sieur."

"And you. Thanks again, 'Ponine."

Eponine smiled again and turned to walk away. Twenty paces later, she steeled herself and turned around. His rapidly departing back was turned to her. He obviously hadn't looked back.


End file.
